Thursday, February 27, 2014

This post is a post of many things. Part basement update, part thrifty find. Part lookie what came free with the house.

Let's start with the basement update. What you, my friends, are looking at is the almost finished bar. Can't get more retro fabulous than some turquoisey aqua, black and white tiles, and some red. Correct me if i'm wrong, but that actually may be the very definition of retro. Look up retro in the dictionary, bam, picture of this. Throw in some stainless, and you're practically ordering up malts in a diner. Except this diner is a bar, and instead of malts we've got a kegerator. A retro kegerator. No, i made that up. i don't think there is such a thing.

See that exposed wood there? My darling is roughing up some metal (it came mirrored and shiny like) that we are then wrapping around that wood foot rest like a stainless little present.

These barstool beauties are what came with the house. The vinyl is in pretty good shape, but the chrome needs to be polished. It was perfect that these freebies were exactly in line with what we wanted down here, so that of course helps the budget.

Hubba, hubba, look at this piece of retro gorgeousness. Now, i know this is retro in a different, more modern way, but it's way more comfortable and stylish and cheaper than the club chair we were initially looking at. Even Ikea club chairs are around 100 bucks. This thrifty find cost us $45. A deal and a steal if i ever saw one! A steel, if you will, as the brand is called Steelcase.

The plan, once we're done, is for this guy to be snug with that pole there. We're gonna box it out and add a granite table top so that whomever is sitting here has a little unobtrusive side table to rest a drink on. Because otherwise it's just a pole in the middle of the room. And who wants that? Who, also, wants a pile of baseboards in the middle of the floor. Let me stress NOT ME, but we are still waiting for the stereo bench to be built.

We don't see this chair model on the Steelcase website, so this leads me to believe it's actually vintage, not modern but made to look vintage. I mean, that tag looks pretty old, right?

Are the chrome legs your favorite part or the slopey arms? Or is it the back's perfect angle for reclining? For me it's all three, plus the fact that visually it doesn't take up much space, since the legs are so long.

Thursday, February 20, 2014

You're probably saying to yourselves "Here she goes again with that dining room." And you may be eye rolling. You'd be pretty much in line with my family, then, who is unfamiliar with the rapid rate of tweaking and change ups happening in my humble abode. I mean, usually a person tweaks, and then there's a finish line. There's not a "let's start again, go a whole different route" line. But, you know, these things happen. I'm becoming the queen of Before/After/Better After....Best After.

I'm a start you off with the Best After. This is where we are now, and where i hope we stay.

Previously we were here, with the Better After.

And it was all because of this light fixture. As it often is, am i right? I thought it made the room feel taller, and brighter, and lighter.

But then all you saw were RED CURTAINS. Loud and yelling and demanding all eyes on them. Opposite of lighter and airier.

And now it's all like, ahhhh. Pattern, and light colors, and nothing SCREAMING at you.

New gallery wall pattern (before there were just sconces with red candles on either side of the mirror).

Just to reiterate with the SCREAMING RED curtains.

And letting the light fixture lead after.

Let's consult the archives-this was the old fixture that was special order, man. i loved that thing. But we never hung it as low as we should, and it gave off an orangey glow. Note the sconces and wasted space on either side of the mirror.

Here we have our very first after, along with aforementioned orangey glow and table runners turned window valances. Don't say this gal ain't crafty.

And our very first before, when the dining room was a bedroom.

You've come a long way, baby! I think (nay, i know) your tweaking days are over. Of course, i did declare success in the debrownification of the living room, and well....you'll see.

In case you're new, and are wondering why there's a victrola in the corner...